


trial and error

by nobrainjustchiakienstar



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Awkward Flirting, Enstars Gift Exchange 2020, First Dates, First Kiss, Getting Together, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-07
Updated: 2021-01-07
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:07:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,843
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28307253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nobrainjustchiakienstar/pseuds/nobrainjustchiakienstar
Summary: Is he even dating Rinne? They've never talked about it, and Rinne jumped straight to marriage as early as their first meeting… Niki figures it's safest to assume they're not, especially since he doubts Rinne understands how Niki feels about him anyway....Luckily, after the Date Plan Idea Squad finished their project, Niki's left with a fool-proof, step-by-step plan for... well, a date. With Rinne.
Relationships: Amagi Rinne/Shiina Niki
Comments: 6
Kudos: 80





	trial and error

**Author's Note:**

> this is my gift for @stopitadd on twitter for the Enstars Gift Exchange! i was really digging through my stash of rnnk ideas for something fun but ended up just winging it to figure out something completely different lmao so i hope you like this! it's a lot longer and a lot later than i was hoping it would be... it kinda ran away from me a bit, it's my longest fic besides DRG now....

Niki never questions much between himself and Rinne -- physical touch is second nature, sleeping together and returning to Niki's apartment (well, now the dorms) together is just another part of the routine, and Rinne's demanding Niki marries him (and Niki's prompt refusal) is a well-practiced song and dance to the point where Niki doesn't even think about contributing his part of the joke anymore.

Niki never questioned it, that is, until he was chosen for the Date Plan Idea Squad and he realized that he had literally no idea how to do the whole dating thing "correctly".

Is he even dating Rinne? They've never talked about it, and Rinne jumped straight to marriage as early as their first meeting… Niki figures it's safest to assume they're  _ not _ , especially since he doubts Rinne understands how Niki feels about him anyway….

Besides, even if they  _ are _ dating, they're doing it all ass-backward! They never got to know each other before living together and becoming career partners, Rinne tries to strip Niki naked in public but won't even give him a kiss, and, worst of all, they tried  _ eloping _ before MDM when they've never even been on a single  _ date _ ? It's all wrong!

Luckily, after the Date Plan Idea Squad finished their project, Niki was left with a fool-proof, step-by-step plan for... well, a date. With Rinne.

Getting Rinne to agree to the date is the easy part -- all Niki has to say is that he wants to try the miracle date plan that the others helped him with, “for practice,” he says, not that he misses spending time with Rinne or anything.

He totally does, but that’s not the point, he swears.

Rinne accepts without much hassle, probably taking the offer as a way to get Niki to pay for things since it's much harder to steal his wallet now that they don't live together.

When they meet in the entryway to the dorm building, Niki can tell that Rinne’s nervous, not that he has any idea  _ why _ , it can’t be because of their date after all. Rinne’s done and said many, many scandalous things with hundreds of people as witnesses, Niki knows he wouldn’t be rattled over something so small and innocent as a  _ date _ .

Niki doesn’t point it out. “I hope I didn’t keep you waiting,” he greets Rinne, trying to sound as casual as possible (by Kaoru’s advice).

Rinne sighs, loudly and dramatically, “I’ve been waiting fore~ver, Niki-kyun!” Niki rolls his eyes as Rinne throws an arm around his shoulders and starts guiding them to the main door. So much for thinking Rinne was actually  _ nervous _ (or maybe he was overcompensating? Niki finds it hard to read Rinne sometimes anyway). 

“Sooo,” Rinne starts once they’re outside, “what’s first on this magic date plan ya got?” He drops his arm from Niki’s shoulders and slips his hands into his pockets as they start walking toward the nearby shopping district; Niki misses the warmth a little already. It’s not necessarily cold outside, not with summer still lingering in the air, but it just reminds Niki even more of the distance between them now that they’ve never actually had before. He’s found himself actually missing Rinne’s casual touches, even the roughhousing…

Focus, Niki, focus.

“Hmm,” Niki tries to remember the date plan. If he’d learned anything  _ else _ during his time with the Idea Squad, it’s that he’s really, really bad at date ideas, so he left the planning for  _ this _ date to the other guys. “Tenma-kun said food is a good way to start, so we’ll have energy for the rest of the date.”

“‘Tenma-kun’, huh? That sounds like a Niki-idea,” Rinne teases.

“He’s not wrong! Food is important, Rinne-kun!” Niki braces himself for the usual headlock, but Rinne's hands are still deep in his own pockets. Why is Niki disappointed?

Rinne laughs, "So where are we going for food? Got any recs, Chef?"

Ah, no. No he doesn't. What kind of chef doesn't know what kind of restaurant to go to for a date? What can he  _ afford _ , anyway? Niki glances over the buildings as they walk past, trying to rely on his nose to guide him somewhere nice: there's a ramen bar, a western burger chain, some Japanese attempt at "Italian" that Niki heard Chiaki telling Kaoru about, and--

"How about yakiniku?" Niki suggests.

Rinne gives him a grunt of approval, heading into the restaurant with Niki close behind. The restaurant looks a lot nicer than Niki had expected for a Thyme Street place -- he hopes it doesn’t drain his funds. It’s busy too, Niki supposes that’s normal for a weekend evening but an ingrained nagging fear of being caught doing something embarrassing (or worse: Rinne doing something objectionable in public) settles in the back of his mind. Idols really don’t get to have normal fun like everyone else.

They’re shown to a table near the back of the restaurant, in a somewhat-quiet corner, and Niki can’t help but be a little relieved that no one seems to have noticed them. He just wants the night to be normal and to have a nice,  _ normal _ date with Rinne for the first time in four years, that’s the point of this whole thing anyway.

Ordering meats makes Niki realize it isn’t Rinne’s spending he has to fear, but rather his own -- he can’t pass up the chance to try everything, so he orders the largest set for them to share. Their waitress starts the grill in the center of their table and leaves for the kitchen with pep in her step, undoubtedly excited for the praise for selling such a big order.

“Niki-kyun, ya sure you’re gonna be able to get through all that?” Rinne nudges Niki’s calf with his foot under the table with a grin, his chin resting on his hand. If Niki didn’t know better, he’d think it’s an affectionate look on Rinne’s face.

“Even if I explode I’ll finish it,” Niki kicks back at Rinne’s legs.

It’s only a few moments before the waitress brings their first plates of meats and vegetables; Niki’s happily started grilling their selection when Rinne comments, “Hey wait, you just suggested this as an excuse to keep cooking, didn’t ya?”

It hadn’t even crossed Niki’s mind.

“No! It just sounded good, I swear!”

“Wow, Niki can’t even trust another chef to cook for him, gotta be expected of a Shiina--”

“Rinne-kun, not too loud with that!”

Rinne pokes at a piece of meat on the grill with his chopsticks. “I’m just kiddin’. I miss your cooking, yaknow? It’s not the same when I gotta order it in the cafe like everyone else.”

Is that… sincerity? From Rinne? Niki must be imagining things.

Niki takes a smaller piece of meat off the grill, dips it in one of the sauces that came with their first serving, and holds it out across the table for Rinne. “You’re just spoiled.”

Without missing a beat, Rinne leans forward and eats the meat straight from Niki’s chopsticks. “Maybe so,” he mumbles with his mouth full, “yet here you are, feedin’ me in public. Ain’t that pretty scandalous?”

It feels familiar. Niki misses it -- he misses offering Rinne pieces of whatever he happened to be cooking for dinner while Rinne held him from behind, even if it was a nuisance to move around the kitchen like that.

“Ugh. Feed yourself.”

Yet Niki continues taking pieces off the grill and offering them to Rinne before dishing portions onto their separate plates; Rinne keeps giving him that pleading look whenever a piece of meat looks like it’s close to being done, so he can’t help it.

Niki complains about Rinne and Rinne teases Niki to get a rise out of him, but Niki can’t deny that the first part of their date is actually surprisingly fun.

As Niki stacks the last of their empty plates and admires their (mostly his own) work, he notices Rinne staring at him surprisingly intently. Before he can ask why, Rinne leans forward across the table, suddenly close,  _ very _ close, bringing a hand to Niki’s cheek--

Then he freezes and leans back into his seat just as suddenly as he’d left it, pulling his hand back with him.

“You had some sauce on your face,” he mumbles.

Niki wipes at it with a napkin. “Did I get it?”

Rinne barely looks up. “Yeah… yeah it’s gone,” he clears his throat, “So what’s next on the date plan?”

Niki had almost forgotten about the plan, if he’s being honest. “Next is your choice, Sakasaki-kun said it’s good to let your date pick the main event.”

“Sounds like a lazy answer t’me, but okay.”

Niki rolls his eyes, but he pays for their meal without arguing (luckily it ends up being cheaper than he feared, or maybe there's just more cash in his wallet than he remembered? Rinne may have slipped a few bills in there when Niki wasn't paying attention.) The second they leave the restaurant, Rinne drapes his arm over Niki’s shoulders again as they leisurely walk further into the shopping district.

Rinne still feels tense next to Niki, but at least it's a small improvement from before.

They make idle chat as they walk, swaying a little as they bump into each other with their close proximity. Rinne refuses to tell Niki where they're going, but once they arrive in front of a swanky bar, Niki figures he should have seen this coming from a kilometer away. However, there's just one problem:

"Rinne-kun, I'm underage."

Niki can  _ feel _ Rinne tense with embarrassment; it only lasts for a split second before Rinne howls with laughter, "Gyahaha! I totally forgot you're a  _ baby _ !" He tightens his hold on Niki, trapping him in a headlock while Niki flails to escape the sudden trap.

"I'm not  _ that _ much younger than you!"

"Maybe you should start callin' me 'onii-chan' again so I don't forget~"

"Hell no!"

Rinne releases Niki, still laughing way too loudly for being outside of an actually-nice-looking bar. "Just kidding, just kidding," his tone softens when he continues, "Maybe we can go together next year, when you're 20."

Niki can't help feeling a little relieved that Rinne wants to stay with him enough to consider plans that far in the future, even though he’s also positive that Rinne means “as friends” and not anything more. Or maybe this is leading to another one of Rinne’s marriage proposals, who knows?

"Sure, but you're paying."

Rinne cackles again. "I'll even treat ya to a meal, how 'bout that?"

"Big promises, coming from you."

Ignoring the jab, Rinne starts down the street again. Niki follows, wondering where Rinne may be leading them next -- they pass the arcade, Rinne's go-to pachinko parlor, even more restaurants; Niki really can't fathom where they may be going.

He doesn’t particularly mind, though. It’s been so long since he and Rinne simply spent time together without work, or even just outside of Niki’s old apartment. Even if Rinne wants to just wander around the area surrounding ES Niki’s more than okay with that….

Damn, he really has it bad.

"Niki?" Rinne’s voice cuts through Niki’s thoughts (probably for the best, Niki isn’t quite ready to confront some of those thoughts anyway).

"What?"

Rinne slows to a halt, putting his hands on his hips and shaking his head. "I don't know where to take ya," he admits after a moment, "I was hoping for a chance to just chat with ya some more, but I guess I really don't go anywhere that's good for dates like that."

“Oh, um…” Niki doesn’t know what to say. He’s not used to having to admit he’s thinking the same as Rinne, of all people. “Morisawa-kun told me about a spot, if you wanna try going there?”

“Lead the way, Niki-kyun~”

Niki hesitates for a moment before reaching for Rinne’s hand. This is a thing people do on dates, right? He could brush it off as just not wanting to get separated on the way, or he could pull his hand away and act like nothing happened if Rinne makes a face… it’s no big deal, right? He hopes that doesn’t happen, hopes especially that Rinne doesn’t say anything embarrassing, he doesn’t know what he’s doing --

Rinne intertwines their fingers. His hand is a little cold, not that Niki minds -- it’s a lot nicer than he’d expected. Not that he spends time thinking about holding Rinne’s hand or anything.

He totally does though, not that Rinne can know about it.

Their hands swinging between them casually, Niki leads the way back to ES.  _ This _ idea from Chiaki is actually his  _ third _ : after being reminded that not everyone is into tokusatsu marathons and the aquarium probably wouldn’t be open so late, he’d pulled Niki aside during the planning meeting to describe a secret spot surprisingly close to the dorms; Niki is still a little skeptical, but if it’s truly as good a spot as Chiaki says it is, it’ll be worth trying it out.

Rinne’s thumb traces idle circles into the back of Niki’s hand; Niki wonders if this could become part of their routine even if Rinne doesn’t feel like being “normal”.

Once they’re back at ES, Niki steers them toward the courtyard. Luckily Chiaki’s directions are easy to follow: just follow the path around the pond until they reach a smaller, second path through some of the shrubbery and trees. There are some secluded sitting areas near the water scattered all around the pond, but they’re mostly obscured from view from the main path and (almost) no one actually has the time to look for them. Chiaki must’ve had insider information.

Niki can’t help but feel like he’s encroaching on someone else’s secrets when he pushes some reeds aside with his left hand, his right still holding Rinne’s.

The surface of the pond is still, with the faintest of ripples breaking the surface and making the moonlight reflected there waver and pulsate rhythmically. Had they not just come through the ES gates on their own feet, Niki would have sworn they were somewhere else entirely; a place so tranquil in the midst of the chaos and tension that seems to never end is an oasis in the middle of a desert. This particular alcove is in a spot where the pond forms a sort of inlet, and features a small pier-like structure in the center of it, built to stick out into the water by about a meter. Reeds and other plants frame the inlet, making it potentially difficult to spot the little pier from anywhere else around the pond, unless one knows exactly what to look for.

It’s amazing, and Niki makes a mental note to thank Chiaki for the directions later. Would he accept a bento as payment?

Rinne whistles as he takes in the scenery, his grip on Niki’s hand tightening for a moment before he pulls Niki to the pier and gesturing to take a seat with him by the water. Niki complies, a little too dumbfounded to object anyway.

If it were a little warmer and not getting chillier by the hour, Niki would consider rolling up his pants and letting his feet dangle over the edge into the water, but for now he sits cross-legged next to Rinne; Rinne leans against his shoulder, his thumb resuming its little patterns on Niki’s skin.

They’re silent for a long moment before Rinne clears his throat. “So, did you learn what you wanted from this date?”

“What do you mean?” Niki hadn’t been trying to “learn” anything!

“You said you wanted to ‘practice’ when ya brought it up. You’re gonna ask that purple kid from Hiiro’s unit out soon, aren’t ya?” Rinne won’t even look at him.

What the  _ fuck _ ?

“Mayo-chan? Nononono,” Niki jerks away on reflex. Rinne’s grip on his hand loosens as he straightens up to compensate. “How did you even get that idea?”

Rinne vaguely gestures with his free hand. “You’re always chasin’ after him and shit, and then you come back from your special collab project with a date plan all giddy and excited to try it out, yaknow? Then you asked if you could practice it with me, all obviously-secretive like you’re plotting something in that empty skull of yours, so what else am I supposed to think? Ya said it yourself that this is ‘just practice’.”

“What?”

“Yaknow I’m glad to help ya out, right? I could be a wingman, help you get lai--”

“Rinne-kun!”

Rinne finally looks over at Niki. Niki isn't that great at reading Rinne's expressions but he swears Rinne looks… hurt? Confused maybe?

"Rinne-kun," Niki repeats, softer this time, "I was asking to practice dating  _ you _ ."

He can't believe Rinne’s making him say it.

Rinne's face betrays none of his emotions, but Niki feels his hand twitch with the slightest of flinches.

“Why?”

‘Because I love you’ is the response Niki refuses to give. He’s said it before of course, but this just feels heavier, somehow.

“Is it really that weird that I just wanted to? You ask me to marry you all the time so I figured a normal date was a lot more… normal. And something we could actually do.”

“Normal?”

Niki sighs. “Yeah, I was thinking during the collab project that I had no experience in dating and… yaknow,” he waves his free hand as he avoids saying ‘love’, that’s one word he doesn’t want to throw so seriously out in the open yet, “but I was ready to run away with you to your village before MDM. I dunno, like I’m not leaving you any time soon, but since we moved here things have just been different… I wanna try normal dating, you know? But I wasn’t sure if you would--”

“Niki…”

“What?”

Rinne sighs dramatically and leans heavily against Niki again. “Jeez, I’ve been flirting with you ‘normally’ for  _ months _ and ya never noticed?”

“Of course I didn’t!”

“Well since it wasn’t obvious, I’ll date you ‘normally’,” Rinne releases Niki’s hand and the cool air hitting his palm after so long is shocking, then puts his arm over Niki’s shoulders again, turning Niki towards him just slightly. “You should’ve said so sooner, I really thought you were gonna run off with ‘Mayo-chan’ and leave me a widower.”

“You wouldn’t be a widower, we’re not married and it’s not like I would’ve  _ died _ ,” Niki relaxes against Rinne, all of the tension from the beginning of their date gone, “Besides, you should know by now that I wouldn’t leave you.”

Rinne shifts suddenly then, wrapping both of his arms around Niki so tightly and suddenly that Niki finds it hard to breathe. He returns the embrace, though not as bone-crushingly tight. The angle is awkward with how they’re sitting on the tiny pier, but Rinne pulls away after a long moment -- however, still close enough that Niki could count the barely-there freckles across Rinne’s nose.

There’s a new tension now, as the new couple silently dares each other to make the next move -- Rinne too hesitant to move forward, but Niki too dishonest to ask for what he wants -- Rinne brushes a bit of Niki’s hair behind his ear and Niki shuts his eyes in anticipation--

A sudden splash and a surprised shout from somewhere shockingly near their spot makes Rinne jump, pulling Niki’s hair in the process and shattering the moment the same way the disturbed water shatters reflected moonlight. Niki yelps at the sudden pain, but before he can even form a complaint, Rinne pulls him to his feet and back to the main path, half-running to distance themselves from the source of the splashing and yelling.

Once they slow to catch their breath, Niki can’t help but laugh. It’s just their luck that they can’t have a moment of peace around ES, anyway. Maybe it’s just karma for all of the chaos they’re usually behind.

“Gyaha!” Rinne joins him for a moment before asking, “So, Niki-kyun. What’s next on the date plan?”

This time Niki really  _ had _ forgotten about the plan, but at least the final step is easy: “Walk me home?”

“Whose dumb idea was that? We live in the same building.”

“Blame Hakaze-kun.”

Rinne falls silent, probably planning some way to heckle Kaoru for the cookie-cutter basic idea later, but Niki doesn’t worry too much about what he’s plotting when Rinne takes his hand again and starts the slow stroll to the main dorm building.

It’s not far at all, and the common area is empty -- it must be past lights-out already. The trek to Niki’s room is quiet, save for the sounds coming from other rooms, neither of them wanting to deal with Keito’s wrath if they’re caught making too much noise in the halls at this hour.

Once they reach Niki’s door, Rinne squeezes his hand and asks, “So, how was that for a ‘normal’ date?”

“Pretty good, actually,” Niki hums contentedly, “but there’s one more part of Hakaze-kun’s idea.”

“And what’s that?”

“A... good-night kiss?” Niki asks hopefully.

As soon as the words leave his mouth, Rinne seems to start running through his options for how to respond and dodge the issue, and Niki’s not sure what he expected, since Rinne’s turned him down on this so many times before. Maybe he’d hoped that since they’re  _ actually _ dating as of approximately fifteen minutes ago, Rinne would consider that close enough to whatever soulmate-level of commitment he always goes on about looking for, or maybe he’d hoped that Rinne would just… cave, give in and let Niki kiss him senseless  _ finally _ after everything they’ve been through, all of the years and all of the living and sleeping together, all of the marriage proposals (and subsequent rejections).

“Okay.”

That’s somehow not the response Niki expected.

Before Rinne can backtrack, Niki takes half a step closer, draping his arms over Rinne’s shoulders to keep him close. Niki’s long-past the butterflies in the stomach phase of liking Rinne, this proximity hardly fazes him anymore, but there’s a certain new excitement that elevates his heart rate nonetheless when Rinne’s hands find his lower back.

He wonders if Rinne feels it too, but not for more than a second before Rinne closes the gap and presses his lips to Niki’s in a kiss way more chaste than Niki’s imagination led him to believe it would be. It’s more like a sigh of relief than a rush of adrenaline.

It only lasts a moment before Rinne pulls back, but Niki chases his retreat to steal a second, then a third and more, feeling like he’s been starved for years and Rinne is his only source of sustenance. He feels Rinne’s lips curl into a smile against his own.

“Can I make a last-minute addition to the date plan?” Rinne asks between kisses.

“Hmm?” Niki doesn’t part long enough to form words.

“Marry me.”

“Can’t,” Niki leaves one more lingering kiss at the corner of Rinne’s mouth. “My turn: stay with me tonight.”

“Deal.”

**Author's Note:**

> rinne: think snakey-boy saw us on his cameras? hey, ya think he's jealous bc he's sitting at his laptop all alone? wanna go make out in the hall to piss him off??  
> niki: suddenly i regret ever meeting you
> 
> my twitter is @shiinyniki o7


End file.
